Preps Plus: Unbeaten teams abound in District 1B

If you ranked the Class B football teams strictly by the numbers, District 1B schools would sweep the podium.

Widely known as one of the historically strong leagues in the Treasure State, the 1B is living up to its reputation in 2014. The district’s five schools are a combined 10-0 on the gridiron this year and rank No. 1 through No. 5 in the MHSA’s Class B power rankings, which determine the at-large postseason qualifiers in Class B.

“If you talk to people in our area … over the last 15 years, people would say the 1B is one of the toughest conferences year-in, year-out,” Fairfield coach Les Meyer said.

His Eagles are a big reason why. A fixture in the Class B postseason in his 18-year tenure, Meyer’s team has had perhaps the two most impressive wins of the season so far. Fairfield blew out defending state champion Missoula Loyola on the road and came home to edge highly touted Townsend, 28-27, last Friday.

Choteau also has a signature win – a road conquest of Bigfork – ballyhooed by many as one of the state’s top teams headed into the year.

“It looks scary once conference starts rolling around,” Choteau skipper Craig Thomas said. “If everybody is as tough as it’s looking like, it’s going to be tough to come out on top.”

While Choteau and Fairfield have marquee wins, other coaches attribute their early successes to not-so-stout competition.

“It might be a little bit of favorable scheduling for us,” said Hugo Anderson, who is in his first year at the helm in Cut Bank. “That’s a good part of it, but there’s a lot of good teams in this conference.”

It’s not as though the Wolves haven’t come to play. They defeated Thompson Falls by 31 to open up the campaign and then had a comfortable 26-7 victory over Three Forks.

“There’s always excitement when something new comes in,” Anderson explained. “Everyone’s a little more excited. We’ve played well.”

Anderson played for Shelby coach Mike White when the two were at Medicine Lake, so the Wolves’ matchup with the Coyotes has been circled on Anderson’s schedule for quite a while. Neither coach had anything but good to say about the other.

“(Anderson is) a great person and he was a great player for me,” White said. “I’m really proud of him.”

White should be proud of his Shelby Coyotes, too. They top the Class B power rankings after two weeks, having outscored opponents Plains and Harlem 114-14.

“We’re happy with where we’re at,” White said. “I keep telling the kids that we’re kind of playing ourselves each week. … Whoever’s lining up across from us is irrelevant for us.”

What is relevant is the White has a freshman under center: his son, Aaron. The young signal caller has done quite a bit right so far.

“At this level and up it’s probably pretty rare to see a freshman put in his position,” the elder White said. “He’s handling it well, and we’re relying on him a lot.”

Whatever the route, all the District 1B programs know the importance of winning nonconference games, especially with the power rankings system that determines if you’re playing or sitting home in November.

Nobody knows that better than Conrad, which snuck into the postseason last year, barely out-pointing Ronan. With the core of his team back from a year ago, Cowboys coach Mick Morris said that experience bodes well for this year’s squad. He attributed the early success to the rest of the district’s schools being in similar situations.

“Teams for the most part were pretty young last year, so I think there’s a lot of good kids back,” Morris said. “I know that’s the case with us.”

The Cowboys took 4B champ Red Lodge into overtime before bowing out in the first round. Conrad has blown out Plains and Troy to start out 2-0 in 2014.

Morris said that while the district is known for long-term success, enrollment numbers don’t really help boost that claim.

“We’ve got to be one of the smallest conferences in terms of enrollment,” he said.

Morris is right. While the enrollment cutoff stands at 339 for Class B, no District 1B school has more than 200 students, according to the MHSA’s fall report. Fairfield, at 117 students, is actually below the Class C threshold.

Looking ahead to Friday, the 1B’s chances at 15-0 don’t seem to be too far-fetched. The longshot of the slate is in Shelby, where the Coyotes host a powerful Glasgow team.

The other squads should be favored. Cut Bank plays host to winless Troy, which is rumored to have three offensive linemen back from injury to block for stud ball-carrier Sean Opland. Choteau and Conrad are at home as well, against winless teams from Roundup and Harlem, respectively.

Fairfield is the lone away team in 1B Friday, as the Eagles travel to Three Forks. The Wolves’ head coach is Fairfield grad Tyler Palmer, brother of current Eagles’ QB Dalton Palmer.

“It’s a big game for the two communities,” Meyer said.

Meyer has been around long enough to know that, while things are good now, they can change in a hurry.

“It goes by fast, but at the same time, it’s a long season,” the veteran coach explained. “A lot can happen between now and (the playoffs).”

He also knows that year-to-year success is never a guarantee.

“It’s cyclical, you know,” Meyer said. “It’s Class B football, where enrollments play a factor and talent comes and goes. It’s not like a college where you can recruit.”

But for now, the 1B seems pretty happy with what it’s got.